Nine Quarters of Jerusalem: A New Biography of the Old City

a writer with encyclopedic knowledge, the amount of research and the amount of effort he put in the book, he digged so deep into the history and on the other hand he didn't forget about the present and the people, i grew up in the old city and i thought i knew so much about it, and this book opened my eyes to even more , obviously some of the negative review are there because basically he is not motivated by a colonial propaganda and the propaganda of the of the occupation, with facts he prove that Jerusalem and -Jerusalem means the old city - belongs to it rightful owners, and it's indigenous people and owner of its land!

An amazing book with really well written and researched text that you just glide through, as a person so is very close to the city and has visited it countless times, I learned so much from this book and felt that the author really peeled back so much.highly recommended if you love the city and its history, you can ignore the politically driven low ratings, its a 5/5!

This book is subtitled a biography. But it’s more of a tour. And if you let Matthew Teller be your guide, you’re in for a special treat. After demonstrating that the common misconception that the Old City of Jerusalem is divided into four quarters (Muslim, Christian, Jewish, Armenian) is nothing but a colonial construct, and explaining how he sleuthed out the culprit, he will then take you to see the sights. However, you’ll do a lot more than check the usual off your list: Holy Sepulchre, Western Wall, Noble Sanctuary, the suq… Teller will take you to nooks and crannies of the city few know about - at least I didn’t despite several trips to Jerusalem. He’ll tell you their stories and how they came to be. And no place comes to be anything without people.That’s where the book excels: the people Teller will introduce you to are the ones you never see or never bother to pay attention to as you roam around the alleys, eager to take photos or buy souvenirs. (Guilty as charged!) You’ll meet shopkeepers who are so much more than meets the eye; craftsmen; people dedicated to helping others, improving the lives of youth. You’ll learn about Sufis and gypsies and Indian mystics, African Muslim communities, remarkable women - some legendary and some real. You’ll meet Karaite Jews whose “practice is astonishingly like Islam” and an Armenian folk-rock musician.And as you follow him around the more-than-four quarters, that old colonial construct will fall apart, as will the simplistic distinction of Arab or Jew, or even Muslim, Christian, Jew, Armenian. You’ll discover so many more flavours of each.Teller does not shy away from strong opinions. In fact he makes no claim to impartiality. He states unequivocally that his book “rejects equality in favour of equity.” His writing style manages to combine chattiness (“But first, food. And an excursion across the border…”) with charming eloquence (“Overhead run strings of lights between the trees; underfoot frolics a tribe of marmalade cats.”) and is a delight to read.

I learned so much about Jerusalem through this book. Teller does NOT promise a comprehensive tour but rather seeks to bring to light the nooks and crannies and corners of the Old City that are less known, less travelled. As he said at the end of the book - much emphasis has been given to certain aspects of Jerusalem - but did you know about the Dom (the gypsies) living there, the history of African Palestinians, the heavy tracks of Sufism in Jerusalem - and more? Did you know about the soup kitchen started by the Ukrainian wife of Suleiman the Magnificent - that is still giving out free soup today? And WHY are the four “quarters” of the old city on all the modern maps but none of the old ones? As someone who loves Jerusalem, I found this book so fascinating I had to purchase a copy from Amazon after reading my library’s copy. I want to take it with me next time I visit the city.

Although the author's style and stories may appeal to some, it is obvious from the outset that Mr. Teller has no love for Israel or its government. He uses the Arab term "disaster" [nakba] when referring to the creation of Israel in 1948. He quotes only Arabs when describing Israeli soldiers walking around with guns in the Old City of Jerusalem, but fails to explain the need for this in light of the countless attacks on Israeli civilians there by Arabs. There are, of course, the inevitable characterizations of Israel's "occupation" of Jerusalem. Save your money for more objective books about the city.

There is a great deal to like about this book, as the author burrows into many nooks and corners of the Old City - but it is fatally flawed. As noted by other reviewers, the author is disgracefully biased, causing him to almost completely omit any account of the Jewish population of the Old City. He devotes about twenty pages out of over 300 to the Jewish Quarter; much of it is devoted to the tiny, but essentially insignificant, Karaite community. There are a couple of sneering comments about Jews who were afraid to live in the Moslem Quarter, and one woman, a refugee from Czechoslovakia who felt afraid to live among non-Jews - in 1946! (Did i tell you that 263,000 Czech Jews had been murdered by the Nazis in WW2?).But the reason for this is admitted by the author himself, who tells us at the end of the book that being Jewish himself was “an add-on embarrassment”. He was - and presumably is - “embarrassed” at being Jewish. He should consult a psychiatrist.I cannot fathom how the publishers of this book accepted a manuscript which so fundamentally lacks scholarly objectivity.

The author shows us parts of The Holy City that we wouldn’t otherwise know about. He writes in a way that makes you want to visit and experience Jerusalem. And he tells the stories of the unheard voices.

A truly inspiring book looking at how the indigenous population of Jerusalem/Palestine struggle to survive & maintain their cultures under a brutal apartheid regime, which is actively supported by the "liberal democratic" western world, to their undying shame.

Believe me, you should read this book. Matthew is a brilliant guide to the city, telling fascinating stories both from its long and rich history and from its modern-day inhabitants. It's a beautifully written book, full of surprising anecdotes and quirky characters, eye-opening and insightful, told with respect and love. I enjoyed every page and learnt so much, and didn't want it to end. I can't wait for my friends to read it so that I can discuss it with them! Thank you, Matthew!

Well. This man could write a menu and I'd read it. This is part travelogue/part history but to me it's an autobiography of a city. I love the way he's changing HOW WE THINK about this place. Important AF.

The book is well written with very interesting detail. But it is shamefully bias and completely anti Israel. Maybe the only good thing about this approach is that the author makes no attempt to hide it or dress it up in subtle language - so you are not left guessing. It is a great pity indeed to call it a ‘new biography’. There’s nothing new in deliberately presenting one side of a story and neglecting the other. For the reader who genuinely wishes to know more about Jerusalem’s biography, it’s checkered and painful history, and the present complex situation, but wants to avoid being steered by an agenda, don’t buy. There are much better ones to choose from.